Oakland teachers say yes to 14 percent raise

Oakland school officials put a nearly 14 percent in teacher raises on the table and then crossed their fingers that the union members would take it.

Just over two-thirds of the city’s public school teachers checked the yes box Wednesday night, ending 18 months of contract negotiations and eliminating the threat of a strike.

The agreement, expected to be approved Wednesday by the school board, includes a combination of retroactive and 2015-2016 school year raises totaling 8.47 percent, as well as future raises totaling 14 percent over the next 18 months, along with a one-time bonus equaling 3.5 percent of their salaries.

The new contract also reduces class sizes and increases the number of counselors in middle and high schools. The union sought, but did not get lower caps on special education class size.

The contract offered a novel approach to teacher raises, linking teacher raises to the amount of money the district gets from the state. In general, teachers would get up to 39 percent of whatever money the district gets from the state, and the same cut from any one-time funding.

“This agreement is game changing in how we provide for salary increases,” said Trish Gorham, president of the local teachers union, the Oakland Education Association, in a statement. “We have ensured that any increase in revenue experienced by the district automatically results in a salary increase for our members.”

Oakland teachers are currently among the lowest-paid in the region. During bargaining, teachers at several schools mounted campaigns for a fair contract, limiting their work to the seven hours dictated in the old contract, which resulted in less homework assigned or lengthy waits for grades on classwork.

And it appeared after Wednesday’s vote, nearly a third who voted no still did not think the contract was good enough, a point Superintendent Antwan Wilson echoed, but noted it will take some time to achieve.

“The approval of OEA members validates this agreement as an important step forward for OUSD’s students and staff, one that will make it easier to identify, develop, and retain top talent and to create the conditions needed to prepare every student for college, career, and community success,” Wilson said, in a statement. “This progress is tremendously encouraging, but it’s not the end, it’s the beginning of a process that will transform OUSD into the Bay Area’s premier education employer.”